NORTHFIELD, Minn. — When the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota and St. Olaf men's basketball teams squared off a year ago, both matchups went down to the wire—with each game decided by eight points or less.
 
And when the two teams met Monday evening at Skoglund Center, the end result was no different.
 
Unfortunately for the Cardinals, for the third straight meeting, it was the Oles who escaped with the nail-biting victory, as St. Olaf used a 16-7 run over the game's final 4:30 to deal Saint Mary's a 79-71 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback.
 
The Cardinals came out firing, scoring nine of the game's first 11 points to take an early 9-2 advantage less than four minutes into the opening half.
 
Over the next nine minutes, however, it was the Oles who caught fire. St. Olaf rattled off 12 unanswered points to take a 14-9 advantage, and built its lead to as many as 13 four times in the opening half—the final time at 34-21 with 7:18 remaining.
 
Unfazed, the Cardinals whittled the Ole lead down to three, 38-35 on a field goal and free throw from Aaron Romportl (Stillwater, Minn.) with three minutes to play. St. Olaf answered with a 3-pointer by Nate Albers, but Cole Kruger (Hayfield, Minn.) converted a layup in the waning seconds to pull Saint Mary's back to within four, 41-37, at the break.
 
In similar fashion to the first half, Saint Mary's was unstoppable to open the second half, capping a half-opening 19-4 run with an Eli Cave (St. Paul, Minn.) to give the Cardinals an 11-point, 56-45 advantage.
 
And, in similar fashion, the Oles would answer.
 
St. Olaf scored 14 of the next 16 points to regain the lead, 59-58, with 7:47 remaining. The Cardinals regained the lead, 64-63 on a Quashingm Smith-Pugh (St. Paul, Minn.) layup with just over five minutes remaining.
 
That, however, would be the last time the Cardinals would play with the lead, as St. Olaf—sparked by a 10-2 burst—outscored Saint Mary's 16-7 down the stretch to seal the win.
 
Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.) led the way for the Cardinals, scoring a team-best 19 points—including a perfect 9-for-9 showing from the free throw line—Romportl (Stillwater, Minn.) chipped in 14 points and Kruger added 13.
 
Saint Mary's shot 39 percent from the field (24-for-61)—but were just 5 of 25 from behind the 3-point line—and added an 18 of 22 effort from the free throw line.
 
Albers led five St. Olaf players in double figures with 18 points. Matthew Stroud chipped in 12 points, followed by Austin Majeskie (11), Robert Tobroxen (11), and Frank Delaney (10).
 
The Cardinals (3-6 MIAC, 5-8 overall) close out the first half of their conference schedule on Wednesday, hosting St. Thomas in a 7 p.m. matchup at the Saint Mary's Gym.